A tester includes electronics for testing a device. The electronics are often cooled in order to reduce undue heating. Cooling may be performed using liquid coolant, such as hydrofluroether (HFE). Liquid cooling is typically performed using an external stationary assembly, which may include a reservoir, a heat exchanger, and a pump. This assembly is typically connected to the tester.
Current generation testers that use liquid cooling directly on the instrument, need not always require dual containment. This is because the coolant used, namely HFE-7100, is not electrically conductive. HFE-7100 has several other useful properties, such as not promoting biological growth, not leaving residue after spills, and not corroding aluminum or other metals.
There are some benefits to using water or other liquids as a coolant, but there are some drawbacks as well. For example, water promotes biological growth, corrodes metals, and can damage equipment due to its conductivity. Existing water-cooled testers address these issues through materials selection and pre-treated water containing biocides and corrosion inhibitors. For example, the issue of leaks may be addressed by using robust fluid connections that are “hard-plumbed.” In other words, there are no regular mated/de-mated fluid connections, since there is no direct cooling of the removable instrument cards.
Water-cooled testers may use direct cooling and cold plates to effect cooling. Such testers may use quick disconnects (QDs) when installing and removing the instrument cards. While QDs can enable liquid connections to an instrument card to be made and broken quickly, many QDs make use of O-rings for sealing. O-ring seals, as employed on QDs, are susceptible to leaking if damaged by handling, contamination in the fluid, or wear due to excessive cycling. Given the large number of QDs used in some testers, leaks may occur.